A Western Cape High Court hearing into the Lagoon Bay Lifestyle Estate development near George got underway on Friday as the developer appeals against the decision of the provincial MEC for environmental affairs and development planning, Anton Bredell to refuse permission for the project.
The developer wants to set aside Bredell’s ruling not to allow the agricultural land to be rezoned or for it to be sub-divided into residential plots. It also wants the Court to declare that the George council has the sole and exclusive authority for the approvals process.
The municipality originally approved the rezoning and sub-division application pending approval from the provincial authorities. The project was given a conditional approval based on amendments to the structure plan by the then MEC for the environmental department, Tasneem Essop.
The changes were apparently made and re-submitted to Bredell – who had replaced Essop – and in April this year he turned down the application. According to Sean Rosenberg SC – acting for Bredell – Essop’s department had recommended that she refuse to amend the structure plan.
She refused to do so and amended it anyway to allow for an investigation of alternative uses for the properties.
According to the developer’s legal team, Mike Maritz and Marius Helberg rezoning applications are always and exclusively considered a “municipal planning” issue and the relevant municipality – in this case George – is the only competent authority to consider them.
In terms of the second part of the application by Lagoon Bay, the developer is arguing that Bredell acted “irrationally, unreasonably and was biased” when he rejected the rezoning and sub-division application.
The developer, Lagoon Bay Lifestyle Estate (Pty) Ltd has so far invested R260 million in the Lagoon Bay development. The case continues in the Western Cape High Court today.
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